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https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode9LifeIsStrangeSuicideAintPainless/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%209%20-%20Life%20Is%20Strange%20-%20Suicide%20Ain't%20Painless.mp3 Life is Strange is one of the stand-out games of the last few years. What makes it work so well, though? And what’s going on under the surface? Is there a difference between raising issues under-represented in gaming and actually dealing with those issues? We take a look at the subtext, the mechanics, the … Continue reading Episode 9: Life is Strange – Suicide Ain’t Painless

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode8LitteredWithTheCorpsesOfOnceBeautifulWomen/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%208%20-%20Littered%20With%20The%20Corpses%20Of%20Once%20Beautiful%20Women.mp3 For halloween our intrepid heroes delve deep into the gothic with a look at Layers Of Fear. Beneath the game’s beautiful exterior lurks a dark, worm-ridden subtext, but like the best of the genre there’s a perverse pleasure in coming back for one more taste… Spoilers for Layers Of Fear and its Inheritance DLC. … Continue reading Episode 8: Layers Of Fear – “Littered With The Corpses Of Once Beautiful Women”

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode7FindingSomethingToFightForTheLastOfUs/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%207%20-%20Finding%20Something%20To%20Fight%20For%20-%20The%20Last%20Of%20Us.mp3 We spent this podcast looking at the last 6 issues in relation to ‘The Last of Us’, so expect all the spoilers, some bickering, lots of pondering and thoughts on topics such as damaged dads, absent mums, patriarchy, narrative points, game play versus story telling, character point of view, and all the subtext, that’s … Continue reading Episode 7: Finding Something To Fight For – The Last Of Us

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode6NewForms/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%206%20-%20New%20Forms.mp3 Having braved EGX 2016, our podcasting heroes relate their tales of daring dos, some gaming dont’s, highlights of EGX, thoughts on VR as a new way of role-playing and their insiders take on the ASA investigation of No Man’s Sky.  Much beer is had. Referenced and recommended resources: ‘Why is games TV advertising down … Continue reading Episode 6: New Forms – EGX, VR, Ads

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode5WhyIsYourMumAGhost/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%205%20-%20Why%20is%20your%20mum%20a%20ghost.mp3 In which our heroes discuss the way parents are represented in recent games . . . or not represented most of the time, if they’re mums.  Questions on our minds were: how do divorce rates and single-parent families affect representation in games? Does the in-game patriarchy reappropriate ‘female suffering’? Daughters, hot or not? Do … Continue reading Episode 5: Parents – ‘Elizabeth, Why Is Your Mom A Ghost?’

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode4MassagesMoustachesAndMacrame/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%204%20-%20Massages,%20Moustaches%20and%20Macrame.mp3 The relationship episode, which doesn’t contain any sex.  We discuss how relationship building in games affects our sense of character, and how our characters affect relationships.  Do predefined characters, such as Geralt in the Witcher games, encourage more meaningful relationships than ‘blank canvas’ characters?  And is ‘blank canvas’ character an expression of our wish … Continue reading Episode 4: Romance – Massages, Moustaches and Macrame

Video games haven’t started the apocalypse quite yet.  Before the end of the world, we had time to talk about traditional narrative and open, sandbox-style gaming.  Does the natural human compulsion to seek patterns and meanings make narrative easier or harder to find in games?  And how do individuals appropriate that to a personal, and … Continue reading Episode 3: Narrative – Lovecraftian Space Baby

https://archive.org/download/TheConversationTreePodcastEpisode2WeveGotDadaIssues/The%20Conversation%20Tree%20Podcast%20Episode%202%20-%20We've%20Got%20Dada%20Issues.mp3 Welcome to our second episode, in which we learn just how hilarious analysing humour in games can be. Discussed in this episode: Comedy in games, featuring Headlander, The Stanley Parable, Jazzpunk, Grand Theft Auto series, Tales From The Borderlands, Goat Simulator, Skyrim, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Fable 2, Fallout series, Portal series and Leisure Suit … Continue reading Episode 2: Comedy – We’ve Got Dada Issues

It’s here! The very first episode of your favourite new videogaming podcast, presented by a pair of narrative junkies. Discussed on this show are: Develop Brighton, Unnamed Shakespeare Game, VR and Fragments of Him Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons and Neverending Nightmares Gone Home, Life is Strange and Oxenfree Resident Evil 7 and Soma … Continue reading Episode 1: Intro & Overview – Nose To The Dreamstone

This is the teaser for our upcoming podcast. We’re a pair of Londoners caught up in the gaming scene and will be looking at how games impact on culture and vice versa. More chin-stroking than score-giving. We’ll also take a look at films and events in and around London town. We may also talk about booze. … Continue reading The Conversation Tree Podcast: Trailer